How do we talk to our friends?
By Carol Smokler
Most of my friends voted for Kamala Harris. They are long-time Democrats and believe in social justice, equality, and democracy, to name a few of their and my ideals. From their perspective, it is hard to see how a plurality of Americans voted for Trump. It is hard to put yourself in someone else’s shoes and see the world from their viewpoint. However, this is what we must do — and what some of us have avoided doing since 2016.
For example, a friend of mine overheard a young woman in Manhattan ask, “Can’t they see that justice is more important than eggs?” To which one might respond, “If you can afford all the eggs you want, then you can focus on justice.” Justice is more important when you can afford basic necessities. Perhaps that young woman should ask herself if she has listened with respect, curiosity, and empathy to this type of Trump voter.
Many of us are lucky to be so financially fortunate that we cannot imagine not buying all the groceries we want, skipping a trip to the lake to save on gas, or taking a second job to help pay the rent. We have not listened to the pain, anger, and despair that are a part of so many people’s lives.
Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI) won a tight Senate race because she listened and focused on these issues. She offered concrete solutions. She didn’t talk about the Inflation Reduction Act. She talked about the 44 new factories being built in Michigan and the good jobs that are coming with them. She didn’t focus on the cost of some medications coming down in the next few years because of Biden-Harris policies because the next few years are not soon enough when you can’t afford your co-pay today.
Slotkin empathized with UAW workers who used to make a middle-class wage and knew they would see their children moving forward and going to college if they wanted. Now, their kids can’t attend college or have serious debt from the higher education they undertook. The American Dream has always meant that your kids would do better than you did. That is not the case for many Americans today.
Why were the transgender ads so effective? It was not because trans girls playing in girls’ sports is something many Americans do not want. It was because by focusing on “trans” issues — even though the Harris campaign did not focus on those issues — Republicans painted the Democrats as a party that prioritized these issues over bread-and-butter issues. These voters were not aware that change doesn’t happen so quickly and that, in the long run, President Biden’s policies were far more likely to help working people than Trump’s policies.
I believe that some Trump voters were not necessarily voting to support Trump’s hateful speech. For some Trump voters, it was a vote for a safer, more secure time where everyone had more chances to move ahead and understood the playing field.
Not all of Trump’s voters admired him. Some voters saw him as a successful businessman, a very manly man, etc. Many voters, however, saw him as the only person available who might see them and fix the problems that they were experiencing. They were able to ignore the lies, the rambling, and his obvious aging and focus solely on the “I can fix it” message. They were saying, “Help me,” and he was saying, “I alone can help.” They bought it. This does not necessarily make his voters crazy, dumb, or inferior. We need to better understand why their legitimate fears led them to fall for Trump’s con despite the Democrats’ track record of policies that would be more helpful to them.
Finally, we need to ask why millions fewer people voted in 2024 than in 2020. The last presidential election was held during a pandemic, and yet more people found a way to vote. It can’t all be because of mail-in ballots. The real question is: Why did people stay home? Why ignore or avoid the election? Maybe they didn’t learn in civics class (which is no longer a mandatory part of the curriculum in many places) that “bad officials are elected by good citizens that didn’t vote.”
Maybe we didn’t give them enough hope or enough reason to vote. I don’t know, but that gap is worth understanding. Just this week I spoke with two first-generation Americans who didn’t vote. One told me that she didn’t know about down-ballot races or amendments. She thought her presidential choice wouldn’t matter in New York state. The second person said he didn’t think that either candidate was good enough for the job, so he and his wife stayed home.
We need to begin the work of listening now and understanding our country outside of our privileged and protected bubbles. We need to communicate more clearly and directly to the concerns of this set of Trump voters. We don’t have to win every Trump voter, nor can we. But this segment might be persuadable with the appropriate empathy, explanation, and messaging. This moment can be a real opportunity — not just a defeat to wallow in and complain about.
Carol Smokler is a JDCA Board member.
